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Shocking Hack: Removing Gel Polish With Sugar

HomeGel NailsShocking Hack: Removing Gel Polish With Sugar

How great it would be, if household items come in handy, in removing stubborn gel nails? Especially sugar which is lying around in every household. For the past couple of days, I am seeing this trend of using crushed or grounded sugar to remove gel nails. And I was curious to try that out, cause why not! It saves money and acetone is harsh.

Acetone that is solely used to remove tough gel polishes occurs naturally in the environment and our body has it, too, in small quantities. However, it is still a chemical (as chemically purified) so has the chance of damaging the skin. If you can avoid acetone and use sugar which is safer then both money and health can be saved.

But the question remains does sugar really work in removing gel nails effectively?

Removing Gel Nails With Sugar – The Truth

I am sure after reading the intro, you are excited and want badly, for sugar to work on breaking down your gel nails.

Unfortunately, sugar does not remove gel nails. Be it crushed, melted, caramelized, or whatever, sugar does not do the job. There is a logical explanation for it. Gel polish and hard gels are acrylates. To break the bond of acrylates and remove gel polish effectively you need a solution. And that solution is 100% acetone. Sugar does not have any ability to break down acrylate.

So, what about all those articles, wiki, influencers talking about using sugar to remove gel nails? To be honest I don’t know why there is so much misinformation regarding gel polishes. To remove gel nails you need 100% acetone. That’s it.

Sugar and Acetone

Sugar is a naturally occurring substance in fruits vegetables and nuts. The same goes for acetone. It occurs in trees, plants, forest fires, and volcanic gasses. Sugar and Acetone are absolutely different from each other. And there is no relation between both of them.

Clearly, there is no substituting acetone for sugar in gel polish removal.

What If I don’t have acetone at home?

That is a valid problem.

Gel polishes are so stubborn that they tend to stick around way past when you want them to come off. And 100% acetone is required to completely remove gel polish. But what if you don’t have it at home and your gel polish is chipping and looking ugly?

That’s a real beauty crisis. Well, put-together nails define our beauty. In that case, I can give you an alternative.

Nail polishes also contain acetone. Dig out a nail polish that is your least favorite from your stock and read the label if it has acetone in it. Then follow the below steps.

  1. Apply nail polish on a single nail first.
  2. Take a cotton ball, then press it down in the nail and remove the gel polish.
  3. Repeat the same on other nails.

That’s it. Don’t let the polish dry. Work instantly.

Word of caution: This can be messy. Acetone works best. This is just a way to solve an emergency.

Final Verdict:

All I can say is please keep a good quality acetone bottle handy. Using a little bit of acetone to remove gel nails will not harm you if you follow the right technique. Don’t try hacks before knowing the complete truth as it might ruin your nails in the wrong run. But if you still want to try here are steps to apply sugar on your nails for removing gel nails.

Mind you, below are not my words, just written whatever info I found on the internet regarding sugar and gel polish removal.

Step 1: Prepare The Sugar

Grind up sugar until it’s fine enough to work into a paste. Once that’s done, put it in a bowl or container and use your fingers to mix some of it into a thick paste.

Grinding the sugar and making a thick paste with patience and care is crucial as it will ensure smooth and tireless removal of gel nail polish.

Ground sugar can get underneath all that color and scrub it off, making your nails as smooth as they were before you applied polish.

Step 2: Soak Your Nails In Sugar Water

After scrubbing you need to soak your nails for about five minutes. Pour water into a glass (8 oz), and dissolve a teaspoon of sugar. Soak your fingernails in it until it’s time to move on to step 3.

While commercial brands claim to help remove gel nail polish, experts advise against using them due to ingredients that may damage your nails or cuticles. And if you’re not up for soaking your nails in plain old water and sugar, these same experts suggest using an acetone-free remover instead.

Step 3: Scrape Off the Top Coat

The topcoat was applied last, and as a result, it will be much thicker than any other layer. It means you’ll need to scrape off more of it. Instead of scraping from side to side as you did with your color coat, scrape it up and down.

Take your orange stick and scrape along your nail bed for about 20 seconds or so, making sure not to miss any spots.

Take your time doing this step; 20 seconds is less time than it sounds like! The topcoat should come right off after just a few scrapes, revealing healthy nails underneath. Be careful when removing dark colors because some might stain as they come off.

Step 4: Scrape Off The Base Coat

After you’ve applied your nail polish remover and left it for five minutes, start scraping off your base coat with a lint-free pad. You may want to pick at your base coat with an orangewood stick or cuticle stick, but these can damage your nails; they will likely weaken them so that they tear when you attempt to remove gel nail polish.

So instead, wait until everything has been soaking for five minutes before you start peeling it off. Make sure only to take off one layer of basecoat at a time. If you peel more than that, you’ll also be taking off layers of color as well as a topcoat—which defeats the purpose of removing gel nail polish!

Step 5: Moisturize Your Cuticles

Maybe you didn’t think about it, but removing gel nail polish can be pretty rough on your cuticles. To make sure they’re as healthy as possible (and ready for next time!), take a minute after you’ve removed your polish to moisturize them with cuticle oil.

The benefit of using oil instead of a lotion is that it won’t break down when exposed to UV light like many other products will, ensuring your nails look and feel great! While you’re at it, don’t forget about all of those cracked nails and hangnails from doing all that filing—you can use oil on those too.

Topic: Gel Nails

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